DINING OUT:

I was surprised to find that Frank’s Steak House in Burbank is a true throwback coffee shop. I don’t mean a modern restaurant with a retro flair. I mean a real, honest-to-goodness restaurant from the ’50s.

When I walked into Frank’s with my family (my wife and our children ages 12 and 2) we literally felt as though we’d stepped into a time warp. It gave us a nice comfortable feeling, like when we go to Grandma’s house. The waitress who seated us was very friendly and wasted no time handing us our menus.

Frank’s Steak House is conscientious of small children. This became evident immediately when I asked for a highchair. I was offered a choice of three — one with a removable tray, a standard edge-of-the-table highchair or a booster seat.

About a year ago, Frank’s Steak House was bought, and is now run by the former head chef of Genio’s restaurant, which closed in 2006 after more than 50 years in Burbank. The menu reflects all the original dishes Frank’s is known for (breakfast, hamburgers, sandwiches and steaks), plus some of the dishes from Genio’s listed on a separate “Specials” menu including lasagna, eggplant Parmesan, gnocchi and the California chicken salad.

I ordered the grilled salmon topped with mango salsa ($12.99). All main entrée items are served with soup or standard house salad, a potato of your choice (mashed, baked, herb baked, or French fries) and sautéed mixed vegetables.

The salmon was cooked to perfection. It was very fresh and flaky, and almost melted in my mouth. The mango salsa complemented the salmon nicely; it was simultaneously sweet and tart, but not at all overbearing. The mashed potatoes were fluffy and very good. The vegetables were crisp, lightly seasoned and also very good.

The fish and chips ($11.99), which my wife ordered with the same accompaniments I had ordered with the salmon, was plentiful albeit slightly bland, but still pretty good overall.

Frank’s also offers a “Kids Menu” with a $5 to $6 range, which boasts hamburgers, grilled cheese and spaghetti with meatballs, among other things. Each kid’s item comes with a choice of French fries or fresh fruit.

Our daughter chose the cheeseburger with fries, and after sampling it myself, reaffirmed the old adage, “You just can’t beat a great burger!”

My son had the hot dog, which arrived to him cut in half and grilled, atop a hamburger bun with a tomato. I was pleasantly surprised that his fresh fruit was cut smaller and bite-sized for him, rather than the typically larger cuts restaurants normally serve.

All compliments about the food aside, I believe the shining moment of the evening was when our 2-year-old decided he was “all done.” He transformed!

The charming, charismatic angel who said “Hi” to everybody as he entered the restaurant became a loud, banging and dropping-the-silverware demon-child, which grips every parent in horror.

Here’s the shining-moment part. Not one person in Frank’s even flinched! We didn’t get any looks, no low murmurs, nothing. The waitresses took it all in stride, as if it were perfectly natural (which it is for a 2-year-old).

It was extremely refreshing.

On another day, I returned on my own and tried two items from the Genio’s menu — the lasagna, which also comes with sourdough bread, and the California chicken salad.

I very rarely eat lasagna at a restaurant, but I’m glad I tried Frank’s. The sauce is made from scratch, and had the perfect blend of herbs, not too much oregano, not too garlicky and was very tasty. The lasagna is definitely one of the chef’s specialties.

As a former head chef, I understand the importance of great food presentation. The California chicken salad was artistically presented. It looked so good I almost didn’t want to eat it.

Grilled chicken, mandarin oranges, green apple slices, avocado and crumbled bleu cheese is attractively arranged atop a mixed bed of spinach, Romaine, arugula, endive and leek leaves.

The honey poppy seed dressing was sweet and tangy, and was absolutely delicious!

Frank’s Steak House is truly a family friendly environment, and I certainly recommend them to families with younger children.

 TOM GROVE is the former head chef for Nick Grippo Catering, and has worked as the personal chef for the curator of the Ennis/Brown House in Los Feliz. He can be e-mailed at tihmtahm@gmail.com.  TOM GROVE is the former head chef for Nick Grippo Catering, and has worked as the personal chef for the curator of the Ennis/Brown House in Los Feliz. He can be e-mailed at tihmtahm@ gmail.com.